BETTING GUIDE: Who are the favourites as F1 heads to Belgium for the final race before the summer break?

It’s nearly time for Round 14 of the 2024 season, with the F1 teams and drivers in Belgium for the last race before the summer break. Spa-Francorchamps is an iconic circuit on the calendar, but is it the venue where Max Verstappen gets back to winning ways, or will the McLarens once again prove too strong?

188BET’s odds are presented in decimal form: for every $1 wagered you would win the figure represented by the odds; so, if Verstappen is favourite at 1.50, you would win $1.50 for every dollar bet.

The odds for the win

Verstappen isn’t the favourite for the win anymore, which is a marked change for what has gone before – not just this season but for the last two as well. Instead, Lando Norris becomes the favourite to take the win at Spa, with his McLaren proving its worth across a range of different track characteristics.

His team mate and F1’s latest race winner Oscar Piastri isn’t too far behind, with the Mercedes duo now ahead of the Ferrari drivers in the odds thanks to their return to race-winning ways.

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● Lando Norris 2.20
● Max Verstappen 3.00
● Oscar Piastri 6.00
● George Russell, Lewis Hamilton 15.0
● Charles Leclerc 26.0
● Carlos Sainz, Sergio Perez 41.0
● Fernando Alonso 301
● Alex Albon, Daniel Ricciardo, Esteban Ocon, Kevin Magnussen, Lance Stroll, Logan Sargeant, Nico Hulkenberg, Pierre Gasly, Valtteri Bottas, Yuki Tsunoda, Zhou Guanyu 601

Lando Norris of McLaren and Max Verstappen of Red Bull Racing after qualifying ahead of the Formula — Norris and Verstappen's emerging rivalry is enthralling to watch

The odds for who will be fastest in qualifying

Norris grabbed pole last time out in Hungary, and is favourite to do so again this weekend. He’s been a proven performer over one lap for quite some time, but has never been on pole at Spa, which counts as a home track for the McLaren man. It’s also a home race for Verstappen, and those two going toe to toe on Saturday is a mouthwatering prospect.

Sergio Perez needs a strong qualifying session, after losing out in Q1 at the last two races. The Mexican is under some pressure as a result, and has slipped down in the odds too.

● Lando Norris 2.75
● Max Verstappen 3.00
● Oscar Piastri 5.00
● George Russell, Lewis Hamilton 11.00
● Charles Leclerc 21.0
● Carlos Sainz 26.0
● Sergio Perez 41.0
● Fernando Alonso, Nico Hulkenberg 101
● Lance Stroll 151
● Alex Albon, Kevin Magnussen 201
● Daniel Ricciardo, Esteban Ocon, Logan Sargeant, Pierre Gasly, Valtteri Bottas, Yuki Tsunoda, Zhou Guanyu 251

BUDAPEST, HUNGARY - JULY 20: Pole position qualifier Lando Norris of Great Britain and McLaren and — Piastri has been pushing his team mate close all season - and got the better of him in Hungary

The odds for a podium finish

The fight for the podium has been hotly contested all season, with the front four teams all vying for those rostrum slots. As such, the midfield hasn’t had a look in this season – but could that change this weekend? There is some weather around as there always seems to be in the Ardennes forest, but as it stands the race itself is set to be dry.

McLaren scored a double podium last time out, with Lewis Hamilton also grabbing a rostrum – his third of the season. Mercedes are expecting this race to play to their strengths a bit more, with that forecast being cooler than in Hungary last time out.

● Lando Norris 1.25
● Oscar Piastri 1.40
● Max Verstappen 1.50
● George Russell 2.10
● Lewis Hamilton 2.65
● Charles Leclerc 5.50
● Carlos Sainz, Sergio Perez 8.00
● Fernando Alonso, Nico Hulkenberg 67.0
● Lance Stroll 101
● Alex Albon, Kevin Magnussen 151
● Daniel Ricciardo, Yuki Tsunoda 201
● Esteban Ocon, Logan Sargeant, Pierre Gasly, Valtteri Bottas, Zhou Guanyu 251

BUDAPEST, HUNGARY - JULY 21: Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain and Mercedes stands for the national — Hamilton made it back to back podiums with a third place finish in Hungary

The odds for a top-six finish

Nico Hulkenberg scored back to back P6 finishes in Austria and at Silverstone, but Haas faded in Hungary. Can they climb back into the points this weekend? They need a strong result, as RB have inched away again in the fight for sixth in the championship.

Speaking of RB, Daniel Ricciardo’s seat isn’t confirmed for next season and after a race to forget in Budapest, he could do with a strong drive at Spa to reignite his chances of earning a place on the grid next season.

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● Lando Norris 1.10
● Max Verstappen, Oscar Piastri 1.15
● George Russell, Lewis Hamilton 1.25
● Charles Leclerc 1.30
● Carlos Sainz 1.40
● Sergio Perez 1.85
● Fernando Alonso 5.50
● Nico Hulkenberg 6.00
● Alex Albon, Lance Stroll 13.0
● Kevin Magnussen 21.0
● Daniel Ricciardo, Esteban Ocon, Pierre Gasly, Yuki Tsunoda 26.0 ● Logan Sargeant, Valtteri Bottas, Zhou Guanyu 41.0

BUDAPEST, HUNGARY - JULY 21: Nico Hulkenberg of Germany driving the (27) Haas F1 VF-24 Ferrari on — Hulkenberg will be hoping Spa suits his car more than Hungary did

The odds for a points finish

After the top five teams stretched away at the start of the year, points for the midfield looked like being in short supply. But of late, there have been top 10 finishes for everyone bar Kick Sauber, who are yet to get off the mark.

Will that change in Spa? Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu might be hoping for a chaotic race to try and help their chances, and a few other teams would embrace the chaos too, like Williams and Alpine who have slipped backwards of late.

● Carlos Sainz, Charles Leclerc, George Russell, Lando Norris, Lewis Hamilton, Max Verstappen, Oscar Piastri, Sergio Perez 1.05
● Fernando Alonso 1.40
● Nico Hulkenberg 1.55
● Lance Stroll 1.70
● Alex Albon 2.50
● Kevin Magnussen 3.50
● Yuki Tsunoda 4.50
● Daniel Ricciardo 5.50
● Esteban Ocon, Pierre Gasly 6.00
● Logan Sargeant 13.0
● Valtteri Bottas, Zhou Guanyu 15.0

BUDAPEST, HUNGARY - JULY 21: Yuki Tsunoda of Visa Cash App RB during the F1 Grand Prix of Hungary — Tsunoda is chasing a third straight points finish after picking up top 10 finishes in Silverstone and Hungary

The odds for fastest lap

Will someone bolt on some soft tyres late on and go for the bonus point for fastest lap? That point would come in very handy for the teams fighting for the lower positions, but it might end up being earned by someone nearer the front.

If someone is chasing down a rival for the win late on, they might need to put in some hot laps to do so – it’s all going to depend on the race situation when it comes to grabbing that extra bonus point come Sunday.

● Lando Norris, Max Verstappen 3.25
● George Russell 7.00
● Lewis Hamilton, Oscar Piastri 8.50
● Sergio Perez 13.0
● Carlos Sainz, Charles Leclerc 15.0
● Fernando Alonso 34.0
● Lance Stroll, Nico Hulkenberg 101
● Alex Albon, Daniel Ricciardo, Kevin Magnussen, Yuki Tsunoda 151
● Esteban Ocon, Logan Sargeant, Pierre Gasly, Valtteri Bottas, Zhou Guanyu 251

What are the odds for which team will take the most points?

Thanks to having two strong team mates going toe to toe, McLaren have been out-scoring their rivals when it comes to total points gained, and as such are now the favourites for this one ahead of Red Bull and Mercedes. But what of Ferrari? They have dropped backwards since Spain, but believe they have a better understanding of why now.

In Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz, they have two proven performers, both of whom would fancy a strong result to reignite some momentum with Monza coming up too.

● McLaren 1.65
● Red Bull 2.90
● Mercedes 6.50
● Ferrari 15.0
● Aston Martin 126
● Alpine, Haas, RB, Kick Sauber, Williams 201

BUDAPEST, HUNGARY - JULY 21: George Russell of Great Britain driving the (63) Mercedes AMG Petronas — Russell picked up the fastest lap bonus point in Budapest

The odds for a Safety Car appearing during the race

Big crashes are commonplace at Spa, the circuit having some high-speed sections, not to mention some famous corners. The Safety Car wasn’t required in Hungary, in what was a relatively straight-forward race in terms of crashes and retirements. But could it come out at Spa?

● Yes 1.40
● No 2.75

The odds for a number of classified drivers

Of late, there haven’t been too many races marred by retirements, with reliability fairly impressive across the board this year. Pierre Gasly has two DNFs in a row thanks to a hydraulics issue though, which Alpine will want to get on top of, and George Russell suffered a retirement at Silverstone.

But will anyone fancy their chances of making up positions at the start – and if so, could we see a multi-car pile up come Sunday?

● Over 18.5 2.00
● Under 18.5 1.70
● Over 19.5 5.00
● Under 19.5 1.15

SPIELBERG, AUSTRIA - JUNE 27: The FIA Safety Car drives past a newly installed gravel trap during — Will the Safety Car make an appearance in Belgium?

The odds for a winning margin

There was nothing in it last weekend in Hungary, Piastri passing his team mate a few laps from the end to edge home by a slim margin. Indeed, since Verstappen ran away with the first couple of races, the margin of victory has been getting smaller and smaller – Hamilton won in Silverstone by less than two seconds, and Russell took the win in Austria by the same margin.

● Over 10 seconds 3.75
● Between 5 and 10 seconds inclusive 4.00
● Under 5 seconds 1.65